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Citing Your Sources Guide

• MLA Works Cited - Examples
• Introduction to Citations
• APA In-text Citations - The Basics
• APA Reference List - The Basics
• APA Reference List - Examples
• APA Handouts
• Citing AI in APA Style
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• MLA In-Text Citations - The Basics
• MLA Works Cited List - The Basics
• Chicago/Turabian - The Basics
• Chicago/Turabian in-text citations
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MLA Works Cited List - By Type

• MLA Manual of Style
• More than one author
• Corporate Author
• Edited Works in Print
• Edition of a Book
• Translated Book
• Multivolume work
• Two or more books by same author
• Articles & Websites

For more detailed information and examples, refer to the following resources:

• Check out the Purdue OWL MLA Style Guide . 
• Check out a print copy of the full MLA Style Guide from Lemieux Library.

* Note:  the City of Publication should only be used if the book was published before 1900, if the publisher has offices in more than one country (which is most major publishers), or if the publisher is unknown in North America.

• Format: Last Name, First Name.  Title of Book . City of Publication, Publisher, Publication Date.
• Example: Bennett, Brit. The Vanishing Half . New York, River Head Books, 2020.

Two Authors

When a book has two authors, order the authors in the same way they are presented in the book. Start by listing the first name that appears on the book in last name, first name format; subsequent author names appear in normal order (first name last name format).

• Format: Last name, First name and First name Last name. Title of work . Publisher name, year.
• Example: Kuang, Cliff and Robert Fabricant. User Friendly: How the Hidden Rules of Design are Changing the Way We Live, Work, and Play . Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2019.

Three or more Authors

If there are three or more authors, list only the first author followed by the phrase et al. (Latin for "and others") in place of the subsequent authors' names. (Note that there is a period after “al” in “et al.” Also note that there is never a period after the “et” in “et al.”).

• Format: Last name, First name, et al. Title of work . Publisher name, year.
• Example: Wysocki, Anne Frances, et al.  Writing New Media: Theory and Applications for Expanding the Teaching of Composition . Utah State UP, 2004.

A corporate author may include a commission, a committee, a government agency, or a group that does not identify individual members on the title page. List the names of corporate authors in the place where an author’s name typically appears at the beginning of the entry.

• Format: Corporation name. Title of work . Publisher, year.
• Example: American Allergy Association.  Allergies in Children . Random House, 1998.

When the author and publisher are the same, skip the author, and list the title first. Then, list the corporate author only as the publisher.

• Format: Title of work . Publisher, year.
• Example: Fair Housing—Fair Lending.  Aspen Law & Business, 1985.

List by title of the book. Incorporate these entries alphabetically just as you would with works that include an author name. For example, the following entry might appear between entries of works written by Dean, Shaun and Forsythe, Jonathan.

• Example: Encyclopedia of Indiana . Somerset, 1993.

To cite the entire edited anthology or collection, list by editor(s) followed by a comma and "editor" or, for multiple editors, "editors." This sort of entry is somewhat rare. If you are citing a particular piece within an anthology or collection (more common), see A Work in an Anthology, Reference, or Collection below.

• Format: Editor last name, First name and editor Last name, First name, editors. Title of work . Publisher, year.
• Example: Goodyear-Ka'opua, Noelani, Howes, Craig, Kamakawiwo'ole Osorio, Jonathan Kay, and Aiko Yamashiro, editors. The Value of Hawai'i 3: Hulihia, the Turning . University of Hawai'i Press, 2020.
• Example: Perkins, Maureen, Ed. Locating Life Stories: Beyond East-West Binaries in (Auto) Biographical Studies . University of Hawai'i Press, 2012.

A Chapter from an Anthology, Reference, or Collection

Works may include an essay in an edited collection or anthology, or a chapter of a book. The basic form is for this sort of citation is as follows:

• Format: Last name, First name. "Title of Essay."  Title of Collection , edited by Editor's Name(s), Publisher, Year, Page range of entry.
• Example: Harris, Muriel. "Talk to Me: Engaging Reluctant Writers."  A Tutor's Guide: Helping Writers One to One , edited by Ben Rafoth, Heinemann, 2000, pp. 24-34.
• Example : Bishop, Elizabeth. "One Art". Norton Anthology of Poetry , 5th ed., edited by Margaret ferguson, Mary Jo Salter, and Jon Stallworthy. W.W. Norton and company, 2005, pp. 1527-1528.

There are two types of editions in book publishing: a book that has been published more than once in different editions and a book that is prepared by someone other than the author (typically an editor).

A Subsequent Edition

Cite the book as you normally would, but add the number of the edition after the title.

• Format: Last name of author, first name, and first name of author last name. Title of work . Edition., Publisher, year.
• Example: Crowley, Sharon, and Debra Hawhee.  Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students . 3rd ed., Pearson, 2004.

A Work Prepared by an Editor

Cite the book as you normally would, but add the editor after the title with the label "edited by."

• Format: Last name of author, First name. Title of work , edited by editor First name Last name, publisher, year.
• Example: Bronte, Charlotte.  Jane Eyre,  edited by Margaret Smith, Oxford UP, 1998.

Note that the format for citing sources with important contributors with editor-like roles follows the same basic template:

...adapted by John Doe...

If you want to emphasize the work rather than the translator, cite as you would any other book. Add “translated by” and follow with the name(s) of the translator(s).

• Format: Author last name, first name. Title of work . Translated by name (first name last name), publisher, year.
• Example: Delisle, Guy.  Factory Summers . Translated by Helge Dasher and Rob Aspinall, Drawn & Quarterly, 2021.

If you want to focus on the translation, list the translator as the author. In place of the author’s name, the translator’s name appears. Their name is followed by the label, “translator.” If the author of the book does not appear in the title of the book, include the name, with a “By” after the title of the book and before the publisher. Note that this type of citation is less common and should only be used for papers or writing in which translation plays a central role.

• Format: Translator last name, first name. Title of work . By Author name (first name last name), publisher, year.
• Example: Huie, Bonnie translator. Notes of a Crocodile. By Qiu Miaojin, New York Review of Books, 2017. 

When citing only one volume of a multivolume work, include the volume number after the work's title, or after the work's editor or translator. This example includes a historical work with a single name as author.

• Format: Last name, first name. Title of work . Translated by First name Last name, vol #., publisher, date.
• Example: Quintilian.  Institutio Oratoria . Translated by H. E. Butler, vol. 2, Loeb-Harvard UP, 1980.

When citing more than one volume of a multivolume work, cite the total number of volumes in the work. Also, be sure in your in-text citation to provide both the volume number and page number(s)

• Format: Last name, First name. Title of work . Translated by First name Last name, Publisher, year. Number of vols.
• Example: Quintilian.  Institutio Oratoria . Translated by H. E. Butler, Loeb-Harvard UP, 1980. 4 vols.

If the volume you are using has its own title , cite the book without referring to the other volumes as if it were an independent publication.

• Format: Author last name, first name. Title of work . Publisher, year.
• Example: Churchill, Winston S.  The Age of Revolution . Dodd, 1957.

List works alphabetically by title. (Remember to ignore articles like A, An, and The.) Provide the author’s name in last name, first name format for the first entry only. For each subsequent entry by the same author, use three hyphens and a period.

• Nguyen, Viet Thanh. The Refugees . Grove Press, 2018.
• ---. The Sympathizer . Grove Press, 2016.

Italicize “The Bible” and follow it with the version you are using. Remember that your in-text (parenthetical citation) should include the name of the specific edition of the Bible, followed by an abbreviation of the book, the chapter and verse(s). See the section on MLA in-text citations for more information.

• Example: The Bible.  Authorized King James Version ,  Oxford UP, 1998.
• Example: The Bible.  The New Oxford Annotated Version ,  3rd ed., Oxford UP, 2001.
• Example: The New Jerusalem Bible.  Edited by Susan Jones, Doubleday, 1985.

Article in an online scholarly journal

MLA requires a page range for articles that appear in Scholarly Journals. If the journal you are citing appears exclusively in an online format (i.e. there is no corresponding print publication) that does not make use of page numbers, indicate the URL or other location information. If page numbers are included, add those in before the URL.

• Format: Last name, first name. "Title of article". Title of journal , vol #, no. #, URL. Accessed day month year.
• Example: Dolby, Nadine. “Research in Youth Culture and Policy: Current Conditions and Future Directions.”  Social Work and Society: The International Online-Only Journal,  vol. 6, no. 2, 2008, www.socwork.net/sws/article/view/60/362. Accessed 20 May 2009.

Article from an Online Database

Cite online databases (e.g. LexisNexis, ProQuest, JSTOR, ScienceDirect) and other subscription services as containers. Thus, provide the title of the database italicized before the DOI or URL. If a DOI is not provided, use the URL instead. Provide the date of access if you wish.

• Format: Last name, first name. "Title of article." Title of journal , vol. #, no. #, date of publication, pp. page range. Title of online database , DOI or URL. Accessed date.
• Example: Alonso, Alvaro, and Julio A. Camargo. “Toxicity of Nitrite to Three Species of Freshwater Invertebrates.”  Environmental Toxicology,  vol. 21, no. 1, 3 Feb. 2006, pp. 90-94.  Wiley Online Library , https://doi.org/10.1002/tox.20155. Accessed 26 May 2009.
• Example: Chowkwanyun, Merlin and Adolph L Reed. "Racial health Disparities and Covid-19: Caution and Context."The New England Journal of Medicine, vol. 383,  no.3, 2020.  p .201-203.  ProQuest , http://dx.doi.org/10.1056/NEJMp2012910. Accessed 25 May 2022.

Article in a Web Magazine

Provide the author name, article name in quotation marks, title of the web magazine in italics, publisher name, publication date, URL, and the date of access.

• Format: Last name, First name. "Title of Article". Title of Web Magazine , date of publication, URL, accessed day month year.
• Example: Bernstein, Mark. “10 Tips on Writing the Living Web.”  A List Apart: For People Who Make Websites , 16 Aug. 2002, alistapart.com/article/writeliving. Accessed 4 May 2009.

A Page on a Website

For an individual page on a Web site, list the author or alias if known, followed by an indication of the specific page or article being referenced. Usually, the title of the page or article appears in a header at the top of the page. Follow this with the information covered above for entire Web sites. If the publisher is the same as the website name, only list it once.

Example: Lundman, Susan. “How to Make Vegetarian Chili.”  eHow , www.ehow.com/how_10727_make-vegetarian-chili.html. Accessed 6 July 2015.

Example: “Athlete's Foot - Topic Overview.”  WebMD , 25 Sept. 2014, www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/tc/athletes-foot-topic-overview.

Citations for e-books closely resemble those for physical books. Simply indicate that the book in question is an e-book by putting the term "e-book" in the "version" slot of the MLA template (i.e., after the author, the title of the source, the title of the container, and the names of any other contributors).

• Format: Author last name, first name. Title of work . E-book, publisher, year.
• Example: Aldama, Frederick Luis. Latinx Ciné in the Twenty-First Century . E-book, University of Arizona Press, 2019

MLA Reference List for Digital & Social Media

@Username. "Full text of tweet."  Twitter , Day month year posted, time posted, URL.

Example: @SketchesbyBoze. "“Why are you reading books when the world is burning?” Because you weren’t made to binge the world’s destruction and there’s good in pursuing joy where you can find it. Fiction arms us with precisely the tools we need to overcome the crisis into which our world has fallen."  Twitter , 19 March 2022, 12:54 PM, https://twitter.com/SketchesbyBoze/status/1505271621820596227

Username. "First several words of Tumblr post (if any, otherwise omit)..."  Title of Tumblr blog , Day month year posted, time posted (if available), URL.

Example: Cheshirelibrary. "I hang out at the library with all the other cool cats."  Cheshirelibrary , 19 March 2022, 1:28 PM, https://cheshirelibrary.tumblr.com/post/189230463800

Lastname, Firstname [or username or page name]. "first several words of a facebook post..."  Facebook , Day month year posted, time posted [if available], URL.

Example: Alfie Scholars. "ScholarWorks at Seattle University Features Alfie Scholars’ Conference Papers."  Facebook , 7 March 2022, https://www.facebook.com/alfiescholars/posts/4748284058554312.

Lastname, Firstname [or single username]. "Title of YouTube Video."  Publishing Website , Day month year posted, URL.

Example: Seattle University. "Seattle University - Lemieux Library and McGoldrick Learning Commons Time-lapse."  YouTube , 13 Sep 2010, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aY2aemMVuJI.

Author [@Username]. “Caption of video.” TikTok, Date Posted, URL.

*Notes:  Include author’s real name if known then their username in brackets unless their username is very similar to their real name. If there is no caption for the video, create a description to use in place of a title. Write it in plain text (no quotes/no italics), and capitalize only the first word and any proper nouns.

Example: Remillard, Lisa [@todaysnews]. “#tax #unemployment #stimulus I asked the IRS, YOUR most most popular questions.”  TikTok , 5 Feb. 2021, vm.tiktok.com/ZMedmreM3/.

Example 2 :   @cbsnews. “How NASA's Mars Perseverance rover will make the most difficult landing ever attempted on the red planet. #news #mars #nasa #edutok #stepbystep.”  TikTok , 5 Feb. 2021, vm.tiktok.com/ZMedm1xu8/.

Lastname, Firstname [or single username]. (handle). "First several words of Instagram post (if any)..."  Instagram , Day month year posted, URL.

Example: Cincylibrary. "Libraries (and coffee) rule the world."  Instagram , 5 Mar 2022, https://www.instagram.com/p/CauitTKMLph/

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MLA Citation Guide (9th edition) : Works Cited and Sample Papers

• Getting Started
• How do I Cite?
• In-Text Citations
• Works Cited and Sample Papers
• Additional Resources

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Quick Rules for an MLA Works Cited List

Your research paper ends with a list of all the sources cited in your paper. Here are some quick rules for this Works Cited list:

• Begin the works cited list on a new page after the text.
• Name it "Works Cited," and center the section label in bold at the top of the page.
• Order the reference list alphabetically by author's last name.
• Double-space the entire list (both within and between entries).
• Apply a hanging indent of 0.5 in. to each entry. This means that the first line of the reference is flush left and subsequent lines are indented 0.5 in. from the left margin.

Sample Paper with Works Cited List

The Modern Language Association (MLA) has compiled  several sample papers  that include explanations of the elements and formatting in MLA 9th edition. 

MLA Title Pages

MLA Title Page: Format and Template   This resource discusses the correct format for title pages in MLA style and includes examples.

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University Libraries      University of Nevada, Reno

• Skill Guides
• Subject Guides

MLA Citation Guide (MLA 9th Edition): Books

• Understanding Core Elements
• Formatting Appendices and Works Cited List
• Writing an Annotated Bibliography
• Academic Honesty and Citation
• In-Text Citation
• Charts, Graphs, Images, and Tables
• Class Notes and Presentations
• Encyclopedias and Dictionaries
• Generative AI
• In Digital Assignments
• Interviews and Emails
• Journal and Magazine Articles
• Newspaper Articles
• Social Media
• Special Collections
• Videos and DVDs
• When Information Is Missing
• Citation Software

General Guideline

The general MLA 9 formatting for books is:

Work Cited List: Last Name, First Name.  Title of Book.  Publisher, Publication Date. 

In-Text: (Author Last Name page number of quote or idea).

Book with One Author

Last Name, First Name. Title of Book.  Publisher, Publication Date. 

(Author Last Name page number).

Kirsh , Steven J.  Children, Adolescents, and Media Violence: A Critical Look at the Research.  Sage, 2006.

Book with More Than One Author

When a book has two authors , order the authors in the same way they are presented in the book.

Last Name, First Name of First Author, and First Name Last Name of Second Author. Title of Book.  Publisher, Publication Date. 

(First Author Last Name page number).

Wykes , Maggie, and Barrie Gunter.  The Media and Body Image: If Looks Could Kill.  Sage, 2005. 

If there are three or more authors , list only the first author followed by the phrase et al. (Latin for "and others") in place of the subsequent authors' names.

Last Name, First Name of First Author, et al. Title of Book . Publisher, Publication Date.

(First Author Last Name, et al. page number).

Nickels, William, et al. Understanding Canadian Business . McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 2016.

(Nickel, et al)

Book with Editor(s) and No Author

Last Name of Editor, First Name, editor(s). Title of Book . Publisher, Publication Date.

Matuz, Roger, editor. Contemporary Canadian Artists . Gale Canada, 1997.

A Work in an Anthology, Reference, or Collection

 format.

Last Name, First Name. "Title of Essay." Title of Collection, e dited by Editor's Name(s), Publisher, Year, Page range of entry. 

(Last Name page number)

 Example

Ross, Colin. "The Story of Grey Owl."  Fiction/Non-Fiction: A Reader and Rhetoric,  edited by Garry  Engkent  and Lucia  Engkent , Thomson Nelson, 2006, pp. 327-333. 

  Note:  The first author's name listed is the author of the chapter/essay/short story. If there is no editor given you may leave out that part of the citation.

Book by a Group or Corporate Author

Name of Corporate Author. Title of Book.  Publisher, Publication Date.

Calgary Educational Partnership Foundation.  Employability Skills: Creating My Future,  Nelson, 1996.

 Note : When a work is published by an organization that is also its author, begin the entry with the title, skipping the author element. List the organization as publisher.

Self-Published

Last Name, First Name. Title.  Date. 

Hocking, Amanda. Fate.  2010.

(Hocking 10).

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Home / Guides / Citation Guides / MLA Format / MLA Works Cited Page

MLA Works Cited Page

What is a works cited page.

The works cited page is a list of all the sources cited within the body and notes of your paper. A works cited page should begin on its own page after the end of the paper content and should list all the entries in alphabetical order by the first item in each entry (usually the author’s name). It should be included in order to give full credit to the sources used and avoid plagiarism, as well as to allow the reader to easily locate each source if needed. Papers in MLA format should always have a works cited page.

It is not necessary to include sources that you consulted but did not directly reference in the works cited list – it should only include the sources you directly quoted or paraphrased. Each in-text citation should therefore have a corresponding entry in the works cited list.

Creating an MLA Works Cited Page:

Citing sources in mla.

• Bibliography vs. Works Cited — What’s the Difference?
• Formatting the Works Cited Page
• Heading & Title Format
• Organizing the References in the List
• Formatting Author Names
• Formatting Author Names in Other Languages
• Title Rules: Capitalization, Italics, and Quotation Marks

Let’s get started with an explanation of what exactly a works cited page is and why creating one is necessary!

Note: This guide is not affiliated with the Modern Language Association. It was developed by EasyBib.com’s in-house librarians to serve as a quick guide and snapshot of some of the guidelines found in the MLA Handbook, 9th ed.

When students and scholars create a research paper, they seek out information in books, websites, journal articles, and many other types of sources. The information from these sources, combined with the scholar’s own thinking and knowledge, aid in the formation of a final project.

However, simply placing information from books, websites, journal articles, newspaper articles, and other source types into a project without a reference is not acceptable. Without a reference or citation, it’ll look like the paper’s author came up with everything themselves!

That means it’s necessary to call out when information is included from outside sources and originated elsewhere.

An MLA works cited page shows all the sources that were consulted and included in a project. Each source has a corresponding in-text citation within the paper.

In-text & parenthetical citations

In the body of a research project, add a short reference next to a quote or paraphrased information that came from a source. This is called a citation in prose or a parenthetical citation.

In-text Citation Example:

Langdon’s expertise is revealed in Chapter 1, when he is introduced to a group of university students. “Our guest tonight needs no introduction. He is the author of numerous books: The Symbology of Secret Sects , The Art of the Illuminati , The Lost Language of Ideograms , and when I say he wrote the book on Religious Iconology, I mean that quite literally. Many of you use his textbooks in class” (Brown 8).

In the example above, the writer displays that the quote was taken from Brown’s book, on page 8.

Even though this information is helpful, the brief reference to Brown and page 8 isn’t enough information to truly understand the origin of the quote. Other relevant information, such as the full name of the author, the title of the book, the publisher, and the year the book was published is missing.

Where can the reader find that information? In the MLA works cited list!

Full references in the works cited list

The MLA works cited list is the final page of a research project. Here, the reader can take the time to truly understand the sources included in the body of the project. The reader can turn to the MLA works cited list, look for “Brown” and see the full reference, which looks like this:

Brown, Dan. The DaVinci Code . Knopf Doubleday, 2003.

Included in the above reference is the full name of the author (Dan Brown), the title of the source ( The DaVinci Code ), the publisher of the book (Knopf Doubleday), and the year the book was published (2003).

The information provided in the reference supplies the reader with enough information to seek out the original source themselves, if he or she would like.

Works Cited Example:

Bibliography vs. Works cited – What’s the difference?

Quite often, the two terms are used interchangeably. While similar, they have some unique differences.

The remainder of this guide focuses on the placement, organization, and styling guidelines for the MLA works cited list.

Another commonly used reference style is APA. If your teacher or professor requests your references be made in APA citation style, check out this page on APA format .

Here’s more information on how to develop an MLA in-text citation and APA in-text citation .

Formatting the MLA works cited page

The reference page is the final page of a research paper and starts on its very own page.

If your project isn’t an actual research paper, but a slideshow, video, or another type of project, follow the same guidelines as above. Place the works cited list on the final slide, page, or screen of the project.

Here are the recommended guidelines for margins, spacing, and page numbers taken from the MLA Style Center’s web page “Formatting a Research Paper.”

Margins in MLA:

• Place one inch margins around the entire document.
• The only exception is the “running head.” See the “Running Head” section below to learn more about the margins of this component.
• Most word processing programs automatically default to one inch margins. In the page setup settings, you can view and modify the size of the margins.

Spacing in MLA:

• Double space the entire page. The title, references, and other components should all have double spaces.

It is not necessary to create double spaces manually by pressing the “enter” or “return” key in between each and every line. Your word processing program can automatically adjust the line spacing for you. Look for a section in the settings area called “Line spacing” or “Paragraph spacing.” You should be able to click or check off “double spacing.”

Page numbers in MLA:

• The reference list is the final page(s) of a research paper.
• If the conclusion of a research project is on page 7, page 8 would be the first page of the reference list. If the list runs onto the next page after that, it would be page 9.

For more information regarding how to display the page numbers, see the section below titled, “Running Head.”

While an APA reference page  is very different from a Modern Language Association style works cited, note that  APA bibliography pages also use double spacing throughout and 1 inch margins.

Heading & title format in MLA

This next section focuses on how to properly label and format the page numbers and title.

Running head

The running head is found at the top of every page of the research project. It’s also included on the reference list.

The running head displays the name of the writer or author of the research project + page number .

There is one space between the author’s name and the page number. Here is an MLA works cited page example of a running head:

The above is an example of a running head that would be seen on page 8 of a research project. The writer’s last name is Kleinman.

General running head guidelines:

• It is placed in the top right corner of every page.
• It sits half of an inch from the top of the page and along the right side’s one inch margin.

Reminder : If the concluding sentence of the research project is on page 10, the reference list starts on page 11. Even though the reference page starts on its own page, the numbering throughout the entire project includes the reference page.

Title of the page

Below the running head is the title of the page, which should either be “Work Cited” or “Works Cited.”

• Only 1 reference = “Work Cited”
• Multiple references =”Works Cited”

Whether you’re making an MLA work cited page or an MLA works cited page, here are some general rules to follow:

• Align the title to the center of the document
• Add a one-inch margin below the top edge of the paper
• Do not bold, italicize, or underline the title
• The title should be the same size and style as the rest of the document (12-point font)
• Place a double space between the title and the first citation on the page

Here’s a sample MLA works cited running head and title:

If you’re reading through this page, but have yet to determine your research paper topic, look no further! We have thorough guides on historical individuals to rev up your brainstorming engine! Check out our guides on Abraham Lincoln , Muhammad Ali , and Marilyn Monroe .

Organizing the references in the MLA works cited list

Hanging indent formatting.

• The full citation entries run along the left side of the paper, along the one inch margin.
• Double space each line.
• Each MLA work cited entry has a hanging indent, meaning the first line of the full reference starts along the one inch margin and any additional lines after the first are indented in one and a half inches from the left margin.

Hanging indent example:

Organizing the Works Cited Entries

There are two options: alphabetical order and non alphabetical order.

Alphabetical order

The majority of references are organized in alphabetical order by the first item in the reference, which is usually an author’s last name. When a source doesn’t have an author, the title is placed first in the reference. Many films and movies, for instance, begin with the title, since no author is present.

Either way, whether the reference starts with the last name of the author, or a title, the entries are placed in alphabetical order.

Works cited MLA example, organized in alphabetical order.

Benjamin, Chloe. The Immortalists . Penguin, 2018.

Black Panther. Directed by Ryan Coogler, performance by Chadwick Boseman, Marvel Studios, 2018.

Egan, Jennifer. Manhattan Beach . Scribner, 2017.

Non-alphabetical order

The majority of reference lists are organized in alphabetical order. However, it is acceptable to only organize “annotated bibliographies” in alphabetical order, chronological order, or subject order.

Here’s more information about the organization and creation of an MLA annotated bibliography .

Formatting Author Names in MLA

If you need help structuring or formatting the author’s name (or multiple authors’ names) in your references, this section will help.

Let’s start with the proper structure for one author’s name (taken from Section 5.6 of the official Handbook ). If the source you’re attempting to cite was created by one individual author, structure the name as follows:

Last name, First name.

The last name of the author is placed at the start of the reference, followed by a comma, and the first name of the author. Conclude this information with a period.

One author with a middle name or middle initial

Work Cited Examples:

• Burroughs, William S.
• Yeats, W. B.
• Alcott, Louisa May.

Wondering how to organize two or more works by Louisa May Alcott in your paper? It may be tricky to determine how to alphabetically arrange the references, since each MLA work cited entry begins with Louisa May Alcott.

Citing multiple sources with the same author To create a proper MLA works cited list when there are multiple sources by the same author, place the references in alphabetical order by the title. Only include the author’s name in the first reference. In place of the author’s name in subsequent entries, place three dashes, followed by a period. (Follows rules from Section 5.126 of the Handbook .)

Below is a visual representation of a properly organized and structured MLA style works cited list. All three sources in this MLA works cited page example are by the author, Louisa May Alcott.

Alcott, Louisa May. “Eight Cousins.” Project Gutenberg , 2018, www.gutenberg.org/files/2726/2726-h/2726-h.htm.

– – -. Little Women. Bantam Classics, 1983.

– – -. Rose in Bloom . CreateSpace, 2018.

Citing a Source with Two Authors in MLA

According to section 5.7 of the official Handbook , the first listed author’s name on the source is the first author seen in the reference. The second listed author’s name on the source is the second author placed in the reference.

The first author’s name is placed in reverse order, followed by a comma and the word “and.” The second author’s name is listed in standard order, followed by a period.

Last name, First name of Author 1, and First name Last name of Author 2.

Work Cited Examples

Brust, Steven, and Emma Bull.

Jory, John, and Mac Barnett.

Citing multiple sources with the same co-authors When there are multiple sources on a reference list by the same co-authors, organize those specific references alphabetically by the titles. Only include the names of the coauthors in the first entry.

Jory, John, and Mac Barnett. The Terrible Two. Amulet, 2017.

– – -. The Terrible Two Get Worse. Amulet, 2017.

Here’s a complex scenario…

There may be times when you’re attempting to add additional sources by one of the co-authors, or the lead co-author along with a different individual.

Here is an example of how a works cited page in MLA would be organized. Included is a source solely written by one of the coauthors (John Jory) and a source by John Jory with a different coauthor, Avery Monsen.

Works Cited Example

Jory, John. The Bad Seed. HarperCollins, 2017.

– – -. Giraffe Problems. Random House, 2018.

Monsen, Avery, and Jory John. All My Friends Are Dead , Chronicle, 2010.

Summary of the above examples:

• Jory John’s work, The Bad Seed , is listed first in the reference list since the single author’s name is organized first in alphabetical order.
• The second entry includes the three hyphens and a period in place of John Jory’s name since it is redundant to write out and display the author’s name again in the list.
• Entries three and four are by the coauthors Jory John and Mac Barnett. The hyphens in the fourth source replace the authors’ names in the third for the same reason as above: it’s unnecessary to write out both co-authors’ names twice. The Terrible Two book is placed before The Terrible Two Get Worse as the titles are placed in alphabetical order.
• The fifth entry is by John Jory and Avery Monsen. Monsen’s name is displayed first on the source, which is why her name is listed first in the entry. Remember: authors are placed in the order they appear on the source.

Citing a Source with Three or More Authors in MLA

When there are three or more authors listed on a source, it is unnecessary to include all individuals’ names in the reference list.

Only include the first listed author’s last name, followed by a comma and their first name, followed by another comma and the abbreviation “et al.”

Work Cited Example

Robertson, Judy, et al.

Et al. is an abbreviation used in academic works. It translates to “and others” in Latin. Replace the second, third, and any additional authors’ names with “et al.” on your work cited page in MLA.

The above example represents a journal article written by Judy Robertson, Beth Cross, Hamish Mcleod, and Peter Wiemer-Hastings. Instead of including all four authors’ names in the entry, only the first listed author’s name is included.

Robertson, Judy, et al. “Children’s Interactions with Animated Agents in an Intelligent Tutoring System.” International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education , vol. 14, no. 3-4, 2004, pp. 335-357. IOS Press , content.iospress.com/articles/international-journal-of-artificial-intelligence-in-education/jai14-3-4-05.

If including an additional reference by Judy Robertson, but with different co-authors, include her name again in the reference list.

For example, take a look at this journal article by Judy Robertson, Judith Good, and Helen Pain. The MLA work cited entry would begin with Judy Robertson, et al. and not three hyphens since there are different co-authors than the first.

Robertson, Judy, et al. “BetterBlether: The Design and Evaluation of a Discussion Tool for Education.” International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education , 1998, pp. 9, 219-236, ijaied.org/pub/1026/file/1026_paper.pdf.

The entries are listed in alphabetical order by the title of the source since the first positions are the same.

Citing Authors with proper titles in MLA

There are times when an author is graced with a prestigious title such as a Duke, Sir, Saint, and others (see Section 2.83 of the Handbook for more examples).

When an author has a specific title, it should be omitted from the body of a project and also omitted from the reference list.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle should be in the project as Arthur Conan Doyle.

On a work cited page in MLA, it would be displayed as:

Doyle, Arthur Conan.

Citing Authors with Suffixes in MLA

If an author has a suffix in his or her name, such as Junior (Jr.) or a roman numeral such as II, III, IV, or V, this information is included in the reference list.

The individual’s name is placed in reverse order, with the last name displayed in the first position. Immediately following the last name is a comma, followed by the first name and middle name. After the first and middle names, a comma is placed, and the suffix of the individual is placed at the end with a period. You should not include the comma preceding the suffix, however, if it is a numeral.

For example, Cal Ripken, Jr. would be structured as

• Ripken, Cal, Jr.

Frederick William III would be structured as:

William, Frederick III.

Citing Pen Names in MLA

If the author’s pen name is one that is well known, it is acceptable to use the pen name in place of the author’s real first and last name.

For example, Mark Twain , Dr. Seuss , George Orwell, and O. Henry are all acceptable to use in a works cited MLA section, as their pen names are well known.

If the author’s pen name is less familiar, you can include the author’s real name in brackets in the reference.

Coffey, Brian [Dean Koontz]. Blood Risk. Bobbs-Merrill, 1973.

Van Dyne, Edith [L. Frank Baum]. Aunt Jane’s Nieces At Work. 1st World Library, 2006.

Formatting Author’s Names in Other Languages

Many names in languages other than English include conventions and features that are different from names in English. This next section provides information to help you properly structure and organize the names of authors in other languages. It follows rules from section 2.73 in the official Handbook .

Citing French Names in MLA

French names often include the particles de, d’, or du. Some examples include Valery Giscard d’Estaing, Bertrand du Guesclin, and Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord.

When “de” is used in an individual’s name, it is separated from the last name. Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord would be structured in a work cited MLA list as:

Talleyrand-Perigord, Charles Maurice de.

If, however, the last name is only one syllable, “de” is considered part of the last name. The reference entry would begin with de and then the last name of the individual, followed by a comma and the first name. In this instance, “de” remains lowercased.

When “du” or “des” is used in an individual’s name, it is included as part of the last name. Capitalize the “d” in “du.” Bertrand du Guesclin would be structured in a work cited MLA list as:

Du Guesclin, Bertrand.

When d’ is placed before a last name, d’ is included as part of the last name, but only when the last name begins with a vowel. Valery Giscard d’Estaing would be structured as:

d’Estaing, Valery Giscard.

Citing Asian Names in MLA

Prior to determining how to structure an Asian author’s name, consider the source. Many Asian publishers display the author’s last name first on sources. If the source was published in Asia, do not reverse the author’s name in the reference list. Write it in the order shown on the source, without any commas. End the author’s name with a period.

If the source was published in English, it is quite possible that the author’s last name is displayed first as well. This is when the researcher must do a bit of detective work to determine the author’s first name and last name. Run the name through a search engine and identify the author’s first name and last name. If the last name is placed first on the source, keep it as is in the reference entry. Do not reverse the names and write it in standard form.

If, on the source, the author’s name is placed in standard order (first name followed by last name) reverse it in the reference list. Begin the reference with the last name of the individual, add a comma, and add the first name of the author. End the field with a period.

Citing Latin Names in MLA

Famous historical figures in Roman history have names that are widely known. Some examples include Julius Caesar, Augustus, Claudius, Constantine, and others. While these individuals are known by their Roman names, their full names are in Latin.

Begin the reference entry with the Roman name. Immediately following the Roman name, add the individual’s full name in brackets. End the information with a period.

Augustus [Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus]. “The Deeds of the Divine Augustus.” The Internet Classics Archive , translated by Thomas Bushnell, 1998, classics.mit.edu/Augustus/deeds.html.

APA citation website references look much different! Make sure you check out our handy guides on EasyBib.com!

Citing German Names in MLA

Two commonly used particles in German names are “von” and “zu.” Examples include Alexander von Humboldt, Ferdinand von Zeppelin, Prince Chlodwig zu Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst, and Maximilian zu Wied-Neuwied.

When a German individual’s name includes the particles “von” or “zu,” the particles are not included as part of the person’s last name. Ferdinand von Zeppelin would be organized in the work cited MLA list as:

Zeppelin, Ferdinand von.

If, on the source, von is displayed as a last name, it is acceptable to include it at the beginning of the individual’s last name. Examples include books by Dita Von Teese and Diane Von Furstenberg.

Von Furstenberg, Diane. Diane: A Signature Life . Simon & Schuster, 2009.

Citing Italian Names in MLA

If the particles d’, del, de, della, di, da, are used in an individual’s last name, and the individual is relatively current and from modern times, the particles are included as part of the last name and the reference entry begins with the capitalized particle.

Di Lampedusa, Giuseppe Tomasi.

When the individual’s name begins with one of the same particles above, but he or she is from historical or ancient times, the particle is not included as part of the individual’s last name.

Citing Spanish Names in MLA

There are two commonly used particles in Spanish names: “de” and “del.” If an individual’s name includes the particle, “de,” do not include it as part of his or her last name. When “del” is visible in an individual’s last name, the “d” in “del” is capitalized and placed at the beginning of the citation.

• Del Toro, Benicio.
• Leon, Juan Ponce de.
• Soto, Hernando de.
• Del Rio, Andres Manuel.

Title rules

Capitalization rules in mla.

According to section 2.90 of the Handbook , titles should be written in title case format. This means that the first letter in the first word, the first letter in the last word, and the first letters of all other important words are capitalized. Any coordinating conjunctions (and, for, but, or, so, nor, and yet), articles (a, an, the), and prepositions in the title are not capitalized.

Here are a few MLA works cited examples of how titles should appear in references:

• A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
• The Wizard of Oz
• Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

If the source you’re attempting to cite is in a language other than English, it is recommended to use “sentence case” form. Sentence case only has the first letter in the first word capitalized and the first letter in any proper nouns capitalized. All other words are written in lowercase letters.

Don’t forget to use EasyBib.com’s MLA work cited generator to develop your works cited page in MLA.

Italics vs. Quotation marks in MLA

Whether the source is placed in italics or quotation marks depends on where the source was found. If the title stands alone (like a book or movie), place the title in italics. If the title was found in a container, such as a website, anthology, edited book, or another type of container, place the source in quotation marks and the container in italics.

Mather, Victor. “Japan Advances in World Cup 2018 Despite Losing to Poland.” New York Times , 28 June 2018, nyti.ms/2IzyUdm.

Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye . Little Brown, 1991.

Formatting titles beginning with numbers in MLA

Titles beginning with numbers are placed in the reference list in alphabetical order, as if the title was written out alphabetically.

Here’s an MLA works cited example: The movie 2 Fast 2 Furious , would be organized in alphabetical order as if it said “ Too Fast Too Furious .” The citation would still be begin with the number even though it is organized alphabetically.

Don’t forget to try EasyBib.com’s MLA works cited generator to help you develop your references and your MLA works cited page. Our MLA works cited generator is free and simple to use!

Developing MLA references on EasyBib.com

EasyBib.com has an MLA works cited generator, which helps you produce references . This means you don’t have to spend time determining how to structure and organize the components of a citation.

To create your complete page of works cited in MLA with our tools, head to the EasyBib homepage.

Did your teacher or professor request that your references be made in MLA format? Luckily for you, MLA is the default format on EasyBib.com. If you’re not sure which style to use, ask your teacher.

• Select your source. Examples: book, website, video, etc. There are several types to choose from!
• Input information. Sources like websites, books, etc., will let you do an automatic search for citation information on your source. Input details like your source’s title, author, ISBN, DOI, or keywords.
• Select your source. Look through the results list and choose the one that matches your source.
• Review details. See what was found during the search.
• Review and edit the citation form. Feel free to add any missing details, or update any fields.
• Complete citation. Congratulations on your new citation! Copy and paste it into your document, or keep adding citations to your list.

All references are automatically organized in proper order and can be exported to Microsoft Word Documents, Google Docs, Dropbox, or One Drive. There’s even an option to email the reference!

Even better? EasyBib Plus gives you access to tools that do more than simply creating full references. References in the text are created for you, too! Whether it’s a Modern Language Association reference, or an APA parenthetical citation , APA book citation , or APA journal reference, we’ll create both types for you.

Need a bit more help? Our plagiarism checker is a one-stop shop to help you with your writing, grammar, and reference needs. Copy and paste your paper into our proofreader and receive comprehensive feedback! Stress less and submit your paper with confidence!

Follow our EasyBib Twitter feed to discover more citing tips, fun grammar facts, and the latest product updates.

MLA Works Cited

“Formatting a Research Paper.” MLA Style Center , Modern Language Association of America, style.mla.org/formatting-papers/.

MLA Handbook . 9th ed., Modern Language Association of America, 2021

Published October 16, 2013. Updated June 20, 2021.

Written and edited by Michele Kirschenbaum and Elise Barbeau. Michele Kirschenbaum is a school library media specialist and the in-house librarian at EasyBib.com. Elise Barbeau is the Citation Specialist at Chegg. She has worked in digital marketing, libraries, and publishing.

MLA Formatting Guide

MLA Formatting

• Annotated Bibliography
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Citation Examples

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• View all MLA Examples

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• The title should be the same size and style as the rest of the document (12-point font)/li>

If the title stands alone, place the title in italics. If the title was found in a container, such as a website, anthology, edited book, or another type of container, place the source in quotation marks and the container in italics.

According to Section 1.2 of the Handbook, titles should be written in title case format. Any coordinating conjunctions (and, for, but, or, so, nor, and yet), articles (a, an, the), and prepositions in the title are not capitalized.

If an author has a suffix in his or her name, the last name is displayed in the first position followed by a comma, the first name, and the middle name. After the first and middle names, a comma is placed, and the suffix of the individual is placed at the end.

Cal Ripken Jr. would be structured as

Author with roman numeral suffix would be structured as

• William, Frederick, III.

An MLA works cited list contains complete details of all the sources that are cited in the text. It helps the reader locate the source in case they want to read it for further understanding. It is included at the end of the paper after the main text. Each entry provides all of the information about each source so that it can be easily located. For example, the works cited list entry for a journal article would include the following elements:

Title of the article

Journal title

Volume number

Issue number

Publication date

With the help of the mentioned elements, a reader can locate the source for future reference. In addition, the works cited list arranges entries in alphabetical order according to the surname of the first author or title (if there is no author) to help the reader locate the entry in the list quickly. A few works cited list entries are listed below as examples:

Brenner, Barbara. “Pink Ribbons and Lou Gehrig: Time to Bury Useless Symbols.” So Much to be Done: The Writings of Breast cancer Activist Barbara Brenner , edited by Barbara Sjoholm, UP of Minnesota, 2016, pp. 199–202.

Feldman, Alice E. “Dances with Diversity: American Indian Self‐Presentation Within the Re‐presentative Contexts of a Non‐Indian Museum.” Text and Performance Quarterly , vol. 14, no. 3, 1994, pp. 210–21.

Hymes, Dell H. Discovering Oral Performance and Measured Verse in American Indian Narrative . Johns Hopkins UP, 1977.

The main purpose of the works cited list is to provide the readers with the complete details of the sources cited in the text. It helps the reader locate the source in case they want to do further research or verify information. It also helps to ensure that full credit is given to the sources utilized in the paper. The works cited list is placed at the end of the paper after the main text. For example, the works cited list entry for a journal article would include the author’s name, the title of the article, the journal title, the volume and issue number of the journal, the date the article was published, the page numbers of the article, and the URL if the article was found online. With the help of the mentioned elements, a reader can locate the source for future reference.

The works cited list arranges entries in alphabetical order according to the surname of the first author or title (if there is no author) to help the reader locate the entry in the list quickly.

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MLA Sample Works Cited Page

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Note: We have chosen to include the date of access for the online sources below. The latest MLA guidelines specify that this is optional, but strongly recommended for sources whose date of publication is unavailable.

Note also: The citation for  An Inconvenient Truth  below assumes the film has been cited by its title in the text. If it had been cited by the name of its director, the citation would need to begin with Guggenheim's surname. MLA guidelines specify that both styles are acceptable (see, e.g., this  "Ask the MLA" page ).

Works Cited

Dean, Cornelia. "Executive on a Mission: Saving the Planet." The New York Times , 22 May 2007, www.nytimes.com/2007/05/22/science/earth/22ander.html?_r=0. Accessed 29 May 2019.

Ebert, Roger. Review of  An Inconvenient Truth , directed by Davis Guggenheim.  Ebert Digital LLC , 1 June 2006, www.rogerebert.com/reviews/an-inconvenient-truth-2006. Accessed 15 June 2019.

Gowdy, John. "Avoiding Self-Organized Extinction: Toward a Co-Evolutionary Economics of Sustainability." International Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology, vol. 14, no. 1, 2007, pp. 27-36.

Harris, Rob, and Andrew C. Revkin. “Clinton on Climate Change.”  The New York Times , 17 May 2007, www.nytimes.com/video/world/americas/1194817109438/clinton-on-climate-change.html. Accessed 29 July 2016.

An Inconvenient Truth . Directed by Davis Guggenheim, Paramount, 2006.

Leroux, Marcel. Global Warming: Myth or Reality?: The Erring Ways of Climatology . Springer, 2005.

Milken, Michael, et al. "On Global Warming and Financial Imbalances." New Perspectives Quarterly , vol. 23, no. 4, 2006, p. 63.

Nordhaus, William D. "After Kyoto: Alternative Mechanisms to Control Global Warming." American Economic Review , vol. 96, no. 2, 2006, pp. 31-34.

---. "Global Warming Economics." Science, vol. 294, no. 5545, 9 Nov. 2001, pp. 1283-84, DOI: 10.1126/science.1065007.

Regas, Diane. “Three Key Energy Policies That Can Help Us Turn the Corner on Climate.” Environmental Defense Fund , 1 June 2016, www.edf.org/blog/2016/06/01/3-key-energy-policies-can-help-us-turn-corner-climate. Accessed 19 July 2016.

Revkin, Andrew C. “Clinton on Climate Change.” The New York Times , 17 May 2007, www.nytimes.com/video/world/americas/1194817109438/clinton-on-climate-change.html. Accessed 29 July 2016.

Shulte, Bret. "Putting a Price on Pollution." US News & World Report , vol. 142, no. 17, 14 May 2007, p. 37. Ebsco, Access no: 24984616.

Uzawa, Hirofumi. Economic Theory and Global Warming . Cambridge UP, 2003.

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A publication of the harvard college writing program.

Harvard Guide to Using Sources 

• The Honor Code
• Works Cited Format

What is a Works Cited list?

MLA style requires you to include a list of all the works cited in your paper on a new page at the end of your paper.  The entries in the list should be in alphabetical order by the author's last name or by the element that comes first in the citation. (If there is no author's name listed, you would begin with the title.) The entire list should be double-spaced.

For each of the entries in the list, every line after the first line should be indented one-half inch from the left margin. "Works Cited" should be centered at the top of the page. If you are only citing one source, the page heading should be “Work Cited” instead of “Works Cited.” You can see a sample Works Cited here . 

Building your Works Cited list

MLA citations in the Works Cited list are based on what the Modern Language Association calls "core elements." The core elements appear in the order listed below, in a citation punctuated with the punctuation mark that follows the element. For some elements, the correct punctuation will be a period, and for other elements, the correct punctuation will be a comma. Since you can choose the core elements that are relevant to the source you are citing, this format should allow you to build your own citations when you are citing sources that are new or unusual.

The author you should list is the primary creator of the work—the writer, the artist, or organization that is credited with creating the source.  You should list the author in this format: last name, first name. If there are two authors, you should use this format: last name, first name, and first name last name. For three or more authors, you should list the first author followed by et al. That format looks like this: last name, first name, et al.

If a source was created by an organization and no individual author is listed, you should list that organization as the author.

Title of source .

This is the book, article, or website, podcast, work of art, or any other source you are citing. If the source does not have a title, you can describe it. For example, if you are citing an email you received, you would use this format in the place of a title:

Email to the author.

Title of container ,

A container is what MLA calls the place where you found the source. It could be a book that an article appears in, a website that an image appears on, a television series from which you are citing an episode, etc. If you are citing a source that is not “contained” in another source—like a book or a film—you do not need to list a container. Some sources will be in more than one container. For example, if you are citing a television episode that aired on a streaming service, the show would be the first container and the streaming service would be the second container.

Contributor ,

Contributors include editors, translators, directors, illustrators, or anyone else that you want to credit. You generally credit other contributors when their contributions are important to the way you are using the source. You should always credit editors of editions and anthologies of a single author’s work or of a collection of works by more than one author.  

If you are using a particular version of a source, such as an updated edition, you should indicate that in the citation.

If your source is one of several in a numbered series, you should indicate this. So, for example, you might be using “volume 2” of a source. You would indicate this by “vol. 2” in the citation.

Publisher ,

For books, you can identify the publisher on the title or copyright page. For web sites, you may find the publisher at the bottom of the home page or on an “About” page. You do not need to include the publisher if you are citing a periodical or a Web site with the same name as the publisher.

Publication date ,

Books and articles tend to have an easily identifiable publication date. But articles published on the web may have more than one date—one for the original publication and one for the date posted online. You should use the date that is most relevant to your work. If you consulted the online version, this is the relevant date for your Works Cited list. If you can’t find a publication date—some websites will not include this information, for example—then you should include a date of access. The date of access should appear at the end of your citation in the following format:

Accessed 14 Oct. 2022.

The location in a print source will be the page number or range of pages you consulted. This is where the text you are citing is located in the larger container. For online sources, the location is generally a DOI, permalink, or URL. This is where your readers can locate the same online source that you consulted. MLA specifies that, if possible, you should include the DOI. Television episodes would be located at a URL. A work of art could be located in the museum where you saw it or online.

Your citations can also include certain optional elements. You should include optional elements if you think those elements would provide useful information to your readers. Optional elements follow the source title if they provide information that is not about the source as a whole. Put them at the end of the entry if they provide information about the source as a whole. These elements include the following:

Date of original publication .

If you think it would be useful to a reader to know that the text you are citing was originally published in a different era, you can put this information right after the title of the source. For example, if you are citing The Federalist Papers , you would provide the publication date of the edition you consulted, but you could also provide the original publication date:

Hamilton, Alexander, et al., editors. The Federalist Papers . October 1787-May 1788. Oxford University Press, 2008.

City of publication .

You should only use this information if you are citing a book published before 1900 (when books were associated with cities of publication rather than with publishers) or a book that has been published in a different version by the publisher in another city (a British version of a novel, for example). In the first case, you would put this information in place of the publisher's name. In the second case, the city would go before the publisher.

Descriptive terms .

If you are citing a version of a work when there are multiple versions available at the same location, you should explain this by adding a term that will describe your version. For example, if you watched a video of a presidential debate that was posted to YouTube along with a transcript, and you are quoting from the transcript, you should add the word “Transcript” at the end of your citation. 

Dissertations

• Citation Management Tools
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• In-Text Citation Examples
• Examples of Commonly Cited Sources
• Frequently Asked Questions about Citing Sources in MLA Format
• Sample Works Cited List

PDFs for This Section

• Citing Sources
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Creating an MLA Works cited page

General formatting information for your works cited section.

Beginning on a new page at the end of your paper, list alphabetically by author every work you have cited, using the basic forms illustrated below. Title the page Works Cited (not Bibliography), and list only those sources you actually cited in your paper. Continue the page numbering from the body of your paper and make sure that you still have 1–inch margins at the top, bottom, and sides of your page. Double-space the entire list. Indent entries as shown in the models below with what’s called a “hanging indent”: that means the first line of an entry begins at the left margin, and the second and subsequent lines should be indented half an inch from the left margin. Most word-processing programs will format hanging indents easily (look under the paragraph formatting options).

Introduction to the 8th Edition

In 2016, MLA substantially changed the way it approaches works cited entries. Each media type used to have its own citation guidelines. Writers would follow the specific instructions for how to cite a book, a translated poem in an anthology, a newspaper article located through a database, a YouTube clip embedded in an online journal, etc. However, as media options and publication formats continued to expand, MLA saw the need to revise this approach. Since a book chapter can appear on a blog or a blog post can appear in a book, how can writers account for these different formats?

MLA’s solution to this problem has been to create a more universal approach to works cited entries. No matter the medium, citations include the specifically ordered and punctuated elements outlined in the following table.

Elements of a Works Cited Entry

• Last name, First name
• Italicized If Independent ; “Put in Quotations Marks if Not.”
• Often Italicized,
• Name preceded by role title (for example: edited by, translated by, etc),
• i.e. 2nd ed., revised ed., director’s cut, etc.,
• vol. #, no. #,
• Name of Entity Responsible for Producing Source,
• i.e. 14 Feb. 2014; May-June 2016; 2017,
• i.e. pp. 53-79; Chazen Museum of Art; https://www.wiscience.wisc.edu/ (If possible, use a DOI (digital object identifier) instead of a url.)
• Optionally included when citing a web source.

If the source doesn’t include one of these elements, just skip over that one and move to the next. Include a single space after a comma or period.

The third category—”container”—refers to the larger entity that contains the source. This might be a journal, a website, a television series, etc. Sometimes a source can also appear nested in more than one container. A poem, for example, might appear in an edited collection that has been uploaded to a database. A television episode fits in a larger series which may be contained by Netflix. When a source is in a larger container, provide information about the smaller one (i.e. the edited collection or the TV series), then provide information for elements 3–10 for the larger container. For example, the works cited entry detailed below is for a chapter from an economics textbook, entitled Econometrics, that is contained on UW–Madison’s Social Science Computing Cooperative website.

Example of a Works Cited Entry

Hansen, Bruce E. “The Algebra of Least Squares.” Econometrics, University of Wisconsin Department of Economics, 2017, pp. 59-87. Social Science Computing Cooperative, UW–Madison, http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/~bhansen/econometrics/Econometrics.pdf.

Here is the breakdown of these elements:

• Hansen, Bruce E.
• “The Algebra of Least Squares.”
• Econometrics,
• Other Contributors,
• University of Wisconsin Department of Economics
• Title of source.
• Social Science Computing Cooperative,
• Other contributors,
• UW-Madison,
• Publication date,
• http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/~bhansen/econometrics/Econometrics.pdf.
• (This could be included, but this site is fairly stable, so the access date wasn’t deemed to be important.)

One of the benefits of this system is that it can be applied to any source. Whether you’re citing a book, a journal article, a tweet, or an online comic, this system will guide you through how to construct your citation.

A Few Notes

• Books are considered to be self-contained, so if you’re citing an entire book, items 2 and 3 get joined. After the author’s name, italicize the title, then include a period and move on items 4–9.
• No matter what your last item of information is for a given citation, end the citation with a period.
• Also, if it is appropriate to include an access date for an online source, put a period after the full url in addition to one after the access date information.
• It is particularly important to include access dates for online sources when citing a source that is subject to change (like a homepage). If the source you are working with is more stable (like a database), it’s not as critical to let your readers know when you accessed that material.

For more information about any of this, be sure to consult the 2016 MLA Handbook itself.

Works Cited page entry: Article

Article from a scholarly journal, with page numbers, read online from the journal’s website.

Shih, Shu-Mei. “Comparative Racialization: An Introduction.” PMLA , vol. 123, no. 5, 2008, pp. 1347-62. Modern Language Association , doi:10.1632/pmla.2008.123.5.1347.

Author last name, First name. “Article title.” Journal name , vol. number, issue number, year of publication, pp. numbers. Publisher , doi

PMLA provides DOI numbers, so this is used in this citation preceded by “doi:” instead of the url address. Also, given the enduring stability of PMLA’s page, no access date has been included, but it could be if the writer preferred.

Article from a scholarly journal, with multiple authors, without page numbers, read online from the journal’s website

Bravo, Juan I., Gabriel L. Lozano, and Jo Handelsman. “Draft Genome Sequence of Flavobacterium johnsoniae CI04, an Isolate from the Soybean Rhizosphere.” Genome Announcements , vol. 5, no. 4, 2017, doi: 10.1128/genomeA.01535-16.

First author last name, First name, Middle initial., Second author first name Middle initial. Last name, and Third author First name Last name. “Article title.” Journal name , vol. number, issue number, year of publication, doi

Article from a scholarly journal, no page numbers, read through an online database

Mieszkowski, Jan. “Derrida, Hegel, and the Language of Finitude.” Postmodern Culture , vol. 15, no. 3, 2005. Project MUSE, https://muse.jhu.edu/article/186557.

Author Last name, First name. “Article title.” Journal name , vol. number, issue number, year of publication. Database , url. 

Article from a scholarly journal, with page numbers, read through an online database

Sherrard-Johnson, Cherene. “‘A Plea for Color’: Nella Larsen’s Iconography of the Mulatta.” American Literature , vol. 76, no. 4, 2004, pp. 833-69. Project MUSE , https://muse.jhu.edu/article/176820.

Author Last name, First name. “Article title.” Journal name , vol. number, issue number, year of publication, pp. numbers. Database , url. 

Valenza, Robin. “How Literature Becomes Knowledge: A Case Study.” ELH , vol. 76, no. 1, 2009, pp. 215-45. Project MUSE . https://muse.jhu.edu/article/260309.

Author Last name, First name. “Article title.” Journal name , vol. number, issue number, year of publication, pp. numbers. Database , url.

Article from a scholarly journal, by three or more authors, print version

Doggart, Julia, et al. “Minding the Gap: Realizing Our Ideal Community Writing Assistance Program.” The Community Literacy Journal , vol. 2, no. 1, 2007, pp. 71-80.

First author Last name, First name, et al. “Article title.” Journal name , vol. number, issue number, year of publication, pp. numbers. 

Raval, Amish N., et al. “Cellular Therapies for Heart Disease: Unveiling the Ethical and Public Policy Challenges.” Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology , vol. 45, no. 4, 2008, pp. 593–601.

[The Latin abbreviation “et al.” stands for “and others,” and MLA says that you should use it when citing a source with three or more authors.]

Article from a webtext, published in a web-only scholarly journal

Butler, Janine. “Where Access Meets Multimodality: The Case of ASL Music Videos.” Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology, and Pedagogy , vol. 21, no. 1, 2016, http://kairos.technorhetoric.net/21.1/topoi/butler/index.html. Accessed 7 June 2017.

Author Last name, First name. “Article title.” Journal name , vol. number, issue number, year of publication, url. Date of access.

Balthazor, Ron, and Elizabeth Davis. “Infrastructure and Pedagogy: An Ecological Portfolio.” Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology, and Pedagogy , vol. 20, no. 1, 2015, http://kairos.technorhetoric.net/20.1/coverweb/balthazor-davis/index.html. Accessed 7 June 2017.

First author Last name, First name and Second author First name Last name. “Article title.” Journal name , vol. number, issue number, date of publication, url. Date of access.

Article from a magazine, print version

Oaklander, Mandy. “Bounce Back.” Time , vol. 185, no. 20, 1 June 2015, pp. 36-42.

Author Last name, First name. “Article title.” Magazine name , vol. number, issue number, month and year of publication, pp. numbers. 

Article from a magazine, read through an online database

Rowen, Ben. “A Resort for the Apocalypse.” The Atlantic , vol. 319, no. 2, Mar. 2017, pp. 30-31. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,uid&db =aph&AN=120967144&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Author Last name, First name. “Article title.” Magazine name , vol. number, issue number, month and year of publication, pp. numbers. Database name , url. 

Article from a newspaper, read through an online database

Walsh, Nora. “For Frank Lloyd Wright’s 150th, Tours, Exhibitions and Tattoos.” New York Times , 27 May 2017, international ed. ProQuest , https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/docview/1903523834/fulltext/71B144CD12054C76PQ/2?accountid=465.

Author Last name, First name. “Article title.” Newspaper name , day month and year of publication, edition. Database name , url. 

Works Cited page entry: Short Story

Short story in an edited anthology.

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. “The Minister’s Black Veil.” Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Tales , edited by James McIntosh, Norton, 1987, pp. 97–107.

Author Last name, First name. “Short story title.” Anthology title , edited by Editor name, Publisher, year of publication, pp. numbers. 

Works Cited page entry: Book

Book, written by one author, print version.

Bordwell, David. Figures Traced in Light: On Cinematic Staging . U California P, 2005.

Britland, Karen. Drama at the Courts of Queen Maria Henrietta . Cambridge UP, 2006.

Card, Claudia. The Atrocity Paradigm : A Theory of Evil . Oxford UP, 2005.

Cronon, William. Nature’s Metropolis . Norton, 1991.

Mallon, Florencia E. Courage Tastes of Blood: The Mapuche Community of Nicholás Ailío and the Chilean State , 1906–2001. Duke UP, 2005.

Author Last name, First name. Book title . Publisher, year of publication. 

Book, written by more than one author, print version

Bartlett, Lesley, and Frances Vavrus. Rethinking Case Study Research: A Comparative Approach . Taylor & Francis, 2016.

First author Last name, First name, and Second author First name Last name. Book title . Publisher, year of publication. 

Flanigan, William H., et al. Political Behavior of the American Electorate . CQ Press, 2015.

First author last name, First name Middle initial., et al. Book title . Publisher, year of publication. 

Book, an edited anthology, print version

Olaniyan, Tejumola, and Ato Quayson, editors. African Literature: An Anthology of Criticism and Theory . Blackwell, 2007.

First editor Last name, First name, and Second editor first name Last name, editors. Anthology title . Publisher, year of publication. 

Book, edited, revised edition, print version

Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself . Edited by William L. Andrews and William S. McFeely, revised ed., Norton, 1996.

Author Last name, First name. Book title . Edited by first editor First name Middle initial. Last name and Second editor First name Middle initial. Last name, edition., publisher, year of publication. 

A play in an edited collection, print version

Shakespeare, William. The Comedy of Errors: A New Variorum Edition of Shakespeare . Edited by Standish Henning, The Modern Language Association of America, 2011, pp. 1–254.

Author Last name, First name. Play title . Edited by editor First name Last name, publisher, year of publication, pp. numbers. 

[Page numbers are included in this entry to draw attention to the play itself since this edition includes an additional 400 pages of scholarly essays and historical information.]

Bordwell, David. Foreword. Awake in the Dark: Forty Years of Reviews, Essays, and Interviews , by Roger Ebert, U of Chicago P, 2006, pp. xiii–xviii.

Foreward author Last name, First name. Title of work in which foreward appears , by author of work, publisher, year of publication, pp. numbers. 

Chapter in an edited anthology, print version

Amodia, David, and Patricia G. Devine. “Changing Prejudice: The Effects of Persuasion on Implicit and Explicit Forms of Race Bias.” Persuasion: Psychological Insights and Perspectives , edited by T.C. Brock and C. Greens, 2nd ed., SAGE Publications, 2005, pp. 249–80.

Chapter first author Last name, First name, and Second author First name Middle initial. Last name. “Chapter title.” Anthology title , edited by first editor First initial. Middle initial. Last name and Second editor first initial. Last name, edition number, publisher, year of publication, pp. numbers.

Hawhee, Debra, and Christa Olson. “Pan–Historiography: The Challenges of Writing History across Time and Space.” Theorizing Histories of Rhetoric , edited by Michelle Ballif, Southern Illinois University Press, 2013, pp. 90–105.

Chapter first author Last name, First name, and Second author First name Last name. “Chapter title.” Anthology title, edited by editor First name Last name, publisher, date of publication, page #s. 

Shimabukuro, Mira Chieko. “Relocating Authority: Coauthor(iz)ing a Japanese American Ethos of Resistance under Mass Incarceration.” Representations: Doing Asian American Rhetoric , edited by LuMing Mao and Morris Young, Utah State UP, 2008, pp. 127–52.

Author Last name, First name Middle name. “Chapter title.” Anthology title , edited by first editor First name Last name and second editor First name Last name, Publisher, year of publication, pp. numbers. 

Works Cited page entry: Electronic source

Since MLA’s 8th edition does not substantially differentiate between a source that is read in print as opposed to online, see our information about citing articles for examples about citing electronic sources from periodicals.

Non-periodical web publication, with no author and no date of publication

“New Media @ the Center.” The Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison . U of Wisconsin-Madison Writing Center, 2012, http://www.writing.wisc.edu/[email protected]. Accessed 8 March 2017.

“Title of publication.” Title of the containing website . Publisher of the site, year of publication. Url. Accessed date. 

The syntax for a non-periodical web publication is: author (if no author, start with the title); title of the section or page, in quotation marks; title of the containing Web site as a whole, italicized; version or edition used (if none is specified, omit); publisher or sponsor of the site (if none is mentioned, then just skip this); date of publication (if none is listed, just skip this); use a comma between the publisher or sponsor and the date; the source’s url address; date of access.

Non–periodical scholarly web publication, no date of publication

Stahmer, Carl, editor. “The Shelley Chronology.” Romantic Circles . University of Maryland, https://www.rc.umd.edu/reference/chronologies/shelcron. Accessed 26 March 2017.

Editor Last name, First name, editor. “Title of publication.” Title of the containing website . Publisher, Url. Accessed date. 

Non–periodical web publication, web publication, corporate author

Rhetoric Society of America. “Welcome to the website of the Rhetoric Society of America and Greetings from Gregory Clark, President of RSA!” RSA , Rhetoric Society of America, 2017, http://www.rhetoricsociety.org/aws/RSA/pt/sp/home_page. Accessed 27 March 2017.

Name of Corporate Author. “Title of publication.” Title of the containing website , Publisher of the website, year of publication, url. Accessed date 

The syntax for this entry is: corporate author; title, in quotation marks; title of the overall Web site, in italics; publisher or sponsor of the site; date of publication; the source’s url address; date of access.

Since the material on homepages is subject to change, it is particularly important to include an access date for this source.

E-mail message

Blank, Rebecca. “Re: A request and an invitation for Department Chairs and Unit Leaders.” Received by Brad Hughes, 30 August 2016.

Sender Last name, First name. “Email subject line.” Received by recipient First name Last name, day month and year email was sent and received. 

@UW-Madison. “Scientists at @UWCIMSS used a supercomputer to recreate the EF-5 El Reno tornado that swept through Oklahoma 6 years ago today. #okwx.” Twitter, 24 May 2017, 2:23 p.m., https://twitter.com/UWMadison/status/867461007 362359296.

@Twitter Handle. “Entire tweet word-for-word.” Twitter, day month year of tweet, time of tweet, url. 

When including tweets in the works cited page, alphabetize them according to what comes after the “@” symbol.

Include the full tweet in quotation marks as the title.

Works Cited page entry: Government publication, encyclopedia entry

Government publication.

National Endowment for the Humanities. What We Do . NEH, March 2017, https://www.neh.gov/files/whatwedo.pdf.

Name of Government entity. Title of publication . Publisher, date of publication, url. 

This is treated as a source written by a corporate author.

Signed encyclopedia entry

Neander, Karen. “Teleological Theories of Mental Content.” The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy , edited by Edward N. Zalta, spring ed., 2012, https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2012/entries/content-teleological/.

Author Last name, First name. “Entry title.” Title of encyclopedia , edited by editor First name Middle initial. Last name, ed., year of publication, url. 

Works Cited page entry: Personal interview, film, tv program, and others

An interview you conducted.

Brandt, Deborah. Personal Interview. 28 May 2008.

Interviewee Last name, First name. Personal Interview. Day month year of interview. 

A published interview, read through an online database

García, Cristina. Interview by Ylce Irizarry. Contemporary Literature , vol. 48, no. 2, 2007, pp. 174-94. EBSCOhost. http://web.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/ehost/pdfviewer /pdfviewer?vid=5&sid=f95943f6-5364-49e7-8b83-7341edc4b434%40sessionmgr104. Accessed 26 March 2017.

Interviewee Last name, First name. Interview by interviewer First name Last name. Journal title , vol. number, issue number, year of publication, pp. numbers. Database name. Url. Accessed day month and year. 

Film or DVD

Sense and Sensibility . Directed by Ang Lee, performances by Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, and Kate Winslet, Sony, 1999.

Title of film . Directed by director First name Last name, performances by first actor First name Last name, second actor First name Last name, and third actor First name Last name, Production company, year of release. 

You only need to include performers’ names if that information is relevant to your work. If your paper focuses on the director, begin this entry with the director, i.e., Lee, Ang, director. Sense and Sensibility . . . . If your primary interest is an actor, begin the entry with the actor’s name, i.e., Thompson, Emma, perf. Sense and Sensibility . . . .

Television broadcast

“Arctic Ghost Ship.” NOVA . PBS, WPT, Madison, 10 May 2017.

“Title of episode.” Television series name . Broadcasting network, Broadcasting station, City, day month year of broadcast. 

PBS is the network that broadcast this show; WPT is the Wisconsin PBS affiliate in Madison on which you watched this show.

Media accessed through streaming network

“Self Help.” The Walking Dead , season 5, episode 5, AMC, 9 Nov. 2014. Netflix , https://www.netflix.com/watch/80010531?trackId=14170286&tctx=1%2C4%2C04bba31e-60a0-4889-b36e-b708006e5d05-911831.

“Title of episode.” Title of television series , season number, episode number, Broadcasting channel, date month year of release. Name of streaming service used to access episode , url. 

Gleizes, Albert. The Schoolboy . 1924, gouache or glue tempera on canvas. U of Wisconsin Chazen Museum of Art, Madison, WI.

Artist Last name, First name. Title of piece. Year of composition, medium. Name of institution housing art piece, City, State initials. 

Address, lecture, reading, or conference presentation

Desmond, Matthew. “Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City.” 1 Nov. 2016, Memorial Union Theater, Madison, WI.

Lecturer Last name, First name. “Title of lecture.” Day month year lecture is given, Location of lecture, City, State initials. 

Modern Language Association Documentation

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MLA Table of Contents

Orientation to MLA

Creating an MLA works cited page

Using MLA in–text citations

Abbreviating references to your sources

MLA works cited

Published October 21, 2020. Updated June 5, 2022.

MLA Works-Cited Definition

The works-cited section appears at the end of any work, usually on a separate page. A works-cited list includes references for all sources that were directly mentioned or referenced in the work.

Overview of MLA Works Cited Page Format

The works-cited list includes details of all the works that were cited in your article or essay. Author name, the title of the chapter, title of the container, version, number, publisher, location, etc. are the core elements that go into formulating references included in the works-cited list. The page follows standard MLA formatting guidelines:

• 1-inch margins all around the page
• Double-spaced lines
• Running head with your last name and page number in the top right corner; ½ inch from the top
• “Works Cited” is centered at the top of the page. Bold, italics, or underline font is not used.

For help writing your essay, research paper , or other project, check out these writing tips .

Works -cited vs. bibliography

The works-cited section appears at the end of any work, usually on a separate page. It lists all the sources that have been cited in the document. You may have come across similar lists but with different headings such as “bibliography.” One might assume they are different titles for the same thing, but there is a subtle difference.

A works-cited list includes references for all sources that were directly mentioned or referenced in the work. A bibliography includes the same sources plus sources that were consulted but were not necessarily cited or referred to in the text.

The MLA handbook recommends using a works-cited list. However, if you want to create an MLA bibliography, you follow the same formatting rules.

Types of citation: In-text vs. reference-list citation

An in-text citation cites the source material within the body of your article, paper, essay, chapter, etc. It is mostly very concise, consisting only of the author’s last name (if available) and the page number from where the original information was taken.

A full reference within the works cited list is more detailed and contains all the relevant information about the original material that was referenced in your work. This can include the name(s) of the author(s), title of the work, date of publication, name of the publisher, page numbers, volume and issue number, and URL (in case of online sources).

The works-cited list appears at the end of the paper. Generally, a separate page is used for this section and it goes on for as many pages as are required to entirely list all the sources cited in the work.

Paper formatting

The page follows standard MLA formatting guidelines:

• double-spaced lines
• running head with your last name and page number in the top right corner; ½ inch from the top
• “Works Cited” centered at the top of the page. No bolded, italicized, or underlined font is used.

Works-cited list full reference format

In addition to the above, there are couple formatting rules for MLA works cited references.

• The first line of the citation is flush with the left margin. Any other lines after that are indented 0.5 inches.
• Entries are listed in alphabetical order using the first word in the citation. This is usually the author’s last name, but it could also be source title (if there is no author).
• Lines should be double-spaced.

Sometimes, your entries may be longer than one line. For the readers to be able to distinguish where one entry ends and the other begins, there is the rule of hanging indentation. The MLA handbook suggests users create an indent of 0.5 inches before each line following the first line. So, for instance, if the entry has two lines, the second line will be indented 0.5 inches toward the right.

Example works cited

The citation structure itself will change slightly depending on the source you’re citing, but below is a basic MLA reference template.

Last Name, First Name. “Title of the article, chapter, section, etc.” Source or Container Title , Other contributors, Version, Number, Publisher,

Publication date, Location.

These core elements are generally prevalent in most works but if there is any particular element that is not relevant or available, it can simply be left out. The order of the remaining elements will be the same as indicated above. Note that the location refers to the exact place from where the information was sourced. In case of printed material with pagination, the location would be page number(s). In case of online resource, the location would be the website URL, and so on.

Based on the type of source, the method for citing the source will differ. The following sections demonstrate the full reference formats for different types of sources.

A note about URLs and accessed dates

In MLA style, URLs are placed in the “Location” section of a citation and do not include “http://” or “https://” (except in the case of DOIs). For example:

www.chegg.com

Previous editions of MLA style required the inclusion of the date the webpage was accessed . However, per the 9th edition of the MLA Handbook and the MLA style website , the accessed date is no longer required and is an optional element. The Handbook recommends the inclusion of the accessed date for webpages where there is no clear date published, or for pages that are likely to change or become unavailable over time (like a weather forecast or a social media account).

If you do include the date accessed, here are some general guidelines to follow:

• Add it at the end of the webpage citation, after the URL.
• Use this structure: Accessed Day Month Year.
• If the month is more than 4 letters, it should be abbreviated.

Orange, Richard W. “Pippi and the Moomins.” Aeon , 6 Oct. 2020, aeon.co/essays/pippi-and-the-moomins-served-as-a-social-antidote-to-fascism.

Accessed 18 Oct. 2020.

Since accessed dates are not required, the rest of the citation examples in this guide will not include them.

A book is one of the most common source types used in scholarly works. The core elements that are generally used in the citation of a book in the works-cited list are the name of the author, title, publisher, and year of publication.

Frye, Northrop. Anatomy of Criticism: Four Essays . Princeton UP, 1957.

Book chapter

If you are citing a chapter that is written by an author different from the container’s author, then the name of the chapter’s author will be written first, followed by the chapter’s title. This will be followed by the title of the container and author or editor of the container. The other core elements are the name of the publisher, year of publication, and location (in this case, the range of pages that mark the limits of the source chapter.

Kazi, Seema. “Law, Gender and Governance in Kashmir.” Kashmir: History, Politics, Representation , edited by Chitralekha Zutshi, Cambridge

UP, 2017, pp. 150-171.

Journal article

When citing a journal article, the volume and issue number must be included in the reference. However, the name of the publisher is not required for this source type. Under this category, the article is the first source, and the journal in which the article appears is the container. If the article was accessed through a database, then that will assume the place of the second container and must be included in the citation. It is advisable to always include a digital object identifier (DOI) for a journal article that provides a stable link where it can be easily accessed by your readers.

Every article that appears or is stored digitally is assigned a DOI number. This is a unique alphanumeric string akin to a URL but is more consistent and enduring. Note that when including a DOI, “https://” should be included, unlike other URLs.

Attema, E.P.W., and Fawwaz T. Ulaby. “Vegetation Modeled as a Water Cloud.” Radio Science , vol. 13, no. 2, Mar-Apr. 1978, pp. 357-364. Wiley

Online Library , https://doi.org/10.1029/RS013i002p00357.

Note that in the above example, there are two authors for the article cited. In this case, for any source type, write the first author’s name in the format given in the core elements (last name, followed by a comma and first name) then follow it with an ‘”and” and then write the name(s) of the subsequent author(s) in normal order (first name then last name).

Additionally, in the above example, since it was sourced from an online database, you can see that the last element before the DOI is mentioned as the second container. If a DOI is not available, then you must add a stable URL or permalink instead.

The core elements used to cite material sourced from a website in the works-cited list are the name of the author, the title of the article, name of the web page, and date of publication. In cases where there is no date of publication mentioned, include the date of when the website was accessed if needed. Online newspapers and magazines also fall under this category.

Multiple works by the same author

If there are multiple sources by the same author, then the correct way of including all the sources in the works-cited list is to include them alphabetically by title. The author’s name is to be used only in the first entry and the same format of referencing is to be used as stated above, depending on the source type. For all subsequent entries by the same author, use three hyphens before writing the core elements in their correct order except for the author’s name.

Sainath, Palagummi. “The Cashless Economy of Chikalthana.” Economic & Political Weekly , vol. 51, no. 46, 12 Nov. 2016.

www.epw.in/journal/2016/46/web-exclusives/cashless-economy-chikalthana.html.

— Everybody Loves a Good Drought . Penguin India, 2000.

— “The World Through a Village.” Frontline , Dec. 2017. frontline.thehindu.com/arts-and-culture/literature/the-world-through-a-

village/article9968195.ece.

Note that articles such as a, an, the are not taken into account when arranging the titles alphabetically. If a title begins with a number, then the spelling of the number is to be considered while alphabetizing.

If there is no author for a source, then the title of the source is taken into account and it is placed in the reference list alphabetically based on its title.

Key takeaways

• The works-cited list includes details of all the works that were cited in your article or essay. Unlike a bibliography, it does not include works consulted but not cited.
• The works-cited list appears at the end of the document, on a separate page.
• Author name, title of the chapter, title of the container, version, number, publisher, location, etc. are the core elements that go into formulating references included in the works cited list.

MLA Style Guides

MLA Format: Annotated bibliography | Abstract | Block Quote | Headings | MLA 8 vs. 9 | Outline | Page Numbers | Sample paper | Title page

Citing Sources: In-text citations | Works cited | Footnotes | Citing Multiple Authors | Citing Sources with No Authors | Using et al

MLA Citation Generator: Article | Book | Image | Interview | Journal | Movie | PDF | Textbook | Website | YouTube

Published July 14, 2021.

Not all works require page numbers. A journal article includes page numbers in the works-cited-list entry and so do articles of print newspapers and magazines. Similarly, if you cite a chapter in an edited book, you should include page numbers. Online publications do not require (and do not have) page numbers. The table below shows a few types of works that do require page numbers in the work-cited-list entry.

Reference Entry Examples

Gilbert, J. R. “Performing Marginality: Comedy, Identity, and Cultural Critique.” Text and Performance Quarterly , vol. 17, no. 4, 1997, pp. 317–30.

Chapter in an edited book

Andrews, Malcolm. “The Metropolitan Picturesque.” The Politics of the Picturesque: Literature, Landscape and Aesthetics Since 1770 , edited by Stephen Copley and Peter Garside, Cambridge UP, 1994, pp. 282–98.

An MLA works-cited list contains the details of the sources consulted by the author(s) during the preparation of their paper. The sources cited (referred to as entries here) are arranged alphabetically in the list to enable easy identification. The entries in the works-cited list give as much information as possible, so the reader can easily access the source for further clarification. The works-cited list appears as the final element in a paper. An example of how an MLA works-cited list will look appears below.

Works Cited (centered at the top of the page)

Dudeck, Stephan. “Reindeer Returning from Combat: War Stories among the Nenets of European Russia.” Arctic Anthropology , vol. 55, no. 1, 2018, pp. 73–90.

Fuentes, Marcela A. “Performance Constellations: Memory and Event in Digitally Enabled Protests in the Americas.” Text and Performance Quarterly , vol. 35, no. 1, 2015, pp. 24–42.

Hymes, Dell H. Language, Memory, and Selective Performance: Cultee’s “Salmon’s Myth” as Twice Told to Boas . U of Pennsylvania P, 1985.

Note: Double-space between the heading and the first entry. Use a hanging indent for the entries, indenting any life after the first line half an inch from the left margin. Also double-space the entire list of sources.

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MLA 8 Style Guide

• Getting Started
• In-Text Citations
• Print Journals, Magazines and Newspapers Articles
• Electronic Journals, Magazines and Newspapers Articles

Citing a Book

Helpful Tips:

Be aware that many books are collections of essays written by several different people and edited by one author. If this is the case for you, format your reference information as a  chapter/essay from a book  rather than citing the entire book.

When using a book that has  more than two authors , include only the name of the first author, followed by "et al." For example:

     Smith, John, et al.  Book Title etc.

Indicate any edition other than the first edition.  For example:

Fletcher, Neville H., and Thomas D. Rossing.  The Physics of Musical Instruments . 2nd ed., Springer, 1998.

How to Cite a Book (entire book)

References to books usually include the following elements:

Author, First, and Second Author. Title of Book  Italicized with All Important Words Capitalized . Edition abbreviated if appropriate, Publisher, Date. NOTE:  The place of publication is not generally included; medium is no longer included.

*  Note: Citations are single-spaced here, but be sure to double-space your Works Cited page.

How to Cite a Book (chapter)

*Be aware that many books are collections of essays written by several different people and edited by one author.

References to individual chapters or essays found in a book usually include the following elements:

E ssay/chapter Author, last name first. "Essay or Chapter Title." Book Title,   editor(s) or compiler(s), publisher, date of publication, start page – end page of chapter or essay.  NOTE: Ed. has been replaced with edited by; p age numbers in the works-cited list are now preceded by p. or pp.

Other Types of Print Books

See this page for instructions on how to cite the Bible in MLA format.

Edited Book  

Last Name, First Name, editor.  Title of Book: Italicized with All Important Words Capitalized.  Edition abbreviated if appropriate,  Publisher, Date. 

Schutte, Anne Jacobson, et al., editors.  Time, Space, a nd Women's Lives in Early Modern Europe . Truman State UP, 2001. 

Entry for Item Previously Published in Another Source

Author, Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article in Quotes with all Important Words Capitalized".  Title   of the  Book You used Italicized with All Important Words Capitalized, e dited by Name of Editor in First Last Order, Publisher, Date. Pages. Originally published in..... Benedict, Ruth, "The Past and the Future." Contemporary Literary Criticism vol. 97, edited by Deborah A. Stanley, Gale, 1997, pp. 300-1. Originally published in  Nation  7 December 1946, pp. 656-58. 

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Works-Cited-List Entries

How to cite a book.

To create a basic works-cited-list entry for a book, list the author, the title, the publisher, and the publication date. You may need to include other elements depending on the type of book you are citing (e.g., an edited book, a translation) and how it is published (e.g., in print, as an e-book, online). Below are sample entries for books along with links to posts containing many other examples.

Book by One Author

Mantel, Hilary. Wolf Hall . Picador, 2010.

Book by an Unknown Author

Beowulf . Translated by Alan Sullivan and Timothy Murphy, edited by Sarah Anderson, Pearson, 2004.

An Edited Book

Sánchez Prado, Ignacio M., editor. Mexican Literature in Theory . Bloomsbury, 2018.

More Examples

Anthologies

Books Series

Edited Collections

Multivolume Works

Translations

• Next Example

• Free Tools for Students
• Works Cited Generator

Free Works Cited Generator

Generate a Works Cited page in MLA format automatically, with MyBib!

😕 What is a Works Cited Generator?

A works cited generator is a tool that automatically creates a works cited page in the Modern Language Association (MLA) citation format. The generator will take in information about the sources you have cited in your paper, such as document titles, authors, and URLs, and will output a fully formatted works cited page that can be added to the end of your paper (just as your teacher asked!).

The citations included in a Works Cited page show the sources that you used to construct your argument in the body of your school paper, either directly as references and quotes, or indirectly as ideas.

👩‍🎓 Who uses a Works Cited Generator?

Students in middle school and high school will usually be expected to produce a works cited page to accompany their academic papers. Therefore, they will generally be the users of a works cited generator.

Alongside generating a works cited page, at middle school and high school level it is also important to learn why it's critical to cite sources, not just how to cite them.

🙌 Why should I use a Works Cited Generator?

Formatting works cited pages manually is time consuming, and ensuring accuracy is mind-numbing.

Automating this process with a works cited generator is a quick and easy way to be sure you are doing it correctly (and according to the MLA format!). Our generator also provides a backed-up location to save your citations to as you write each part of your paper -- just keep the MyBib website open in a browser tab while you work and add to your works cited page as you go along!

⚙️ How do I use MyBib's Works Cited Generator?

Using our Works Cited Generator is so easy. Every time you cite a source in your paper, just come back to the generator at the top of this page and enter the source you are citing. Our generator can cite books, journal articles, and webpages automatically, and can cite over 30 other sources if you enter the source details manually.

Save each source to your bibliography, then when you have finished writing your paper just click the 'download' button and the generator will produce a formatted Works Cited page that can be copied and pasted directly to the end of your document.

Daniel is a qualified librarian, former teacher, and citation expert. He has been contributing to MyBib since 2018.

• CSN Libraries
• Library Guides
• Course Guides

ENG 101 - Okey

• Citing in MLA
• Useful Databases at CSN Libraries
• Choosing a Research Topic
• How To Search Databases
• Verifying Sources (CRAAP Method)
• Avoiding Plagiarism

MLA Style Guide and Examples

The Modern Language Association uses the MLA Handbook to provide guidelines on MLA Style, which is the citation style you will be using in this class to format your papers and cite your sources. Included on this page are important documents and links that will help you to use MLA properly.

New MLA 9 rules state that the citation should NOT include http:\\ 

For example, https://roadtrippers.com/the-ultimate-guide-route-66/  should be changed to roadtrippers.com/the-ultimate-guide-route-66/

• MLA 9th Edition
• In-text Quotes
• Works Cited Examples
• Purdue OWL Use this to double-check your citations.

Additional Support

· The CSN Centers for Academic Success is offering online tutoring to CSN Students through Brainfuse .

Brainfuse offers free online tutoring, writing services and homework assistance 24/7.  Certified Brainfuse tutors provide live, on-demand tutoring and assignment help in a variety of subjects. Brainfuse tutors meet students where they are at in order to effectively help students of all skill levels. To access services, students can log into their GoCSN account and then into Canvas. Students can choose a listed course on the left and then click on Brainfuse Online Tutoring.

For more information, watch the video below:

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• Last Updated: Aug 30, 2024 11:18 AM
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Scribbr Citation Generator

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• Introduction
• Finding sources

Evaluating sources

• Integrating sources

Citing sources

Tools and resources, a quick guide to working with sources.

Working with sources is an important skill that you’ll need throughout your academic career.

It includes knowing how to find relevant sources, assessing their authority and credibility, and understanding how to integrate sources into your work with proper referencing.

This quick guide will help you get started!

Finding relevant sources

Sources commonly used in academic writing include academic journals, scholarly books, websites, newspapers, and encyclopedias. There are three main places to look for such sources:

• Research databases: Databases can be general or subject-specific. To get started, check out this list of databases by academic discipline . Another good starting point is Google Scholar .
• Your institution’s library: Use your library’s database to narrow down your search using keywords to find relevant articles, books, and newspapers matching your topic.
• Other online resources: Consult popular online sources like websites, blogs, or Wikipedia to find background information. Be sure to carefully evaluate the credibility of those online sources.

When using academic databases or search engines, you can use Boolean operators to refine your results.

Generate APA, MLA, Chicago, and Harvard citations in seconds

Get started

In academic writing, your sources should be credible, up to date, and relevant to your research topic. Useful approaches to evaluating sources include the CRAAP test and lateral reading.

CRAAP is an abbreviation that reminds you of a set of questions to ask yourself when evaluating information.

• Currency: Does the source reflect recent research?
• Relevance: Is the source related to your research topic?
• Authority: Is it a respected publication? Is the author an expert in their field?
• Accuracy: Does the source support its arguments and conclusions with evidence?
• Purpose: What is the author’s intention?

Lateral reading

Lateral reading means comparing your source to other sources. This allows you to:

• Verify evidence
• Contextualize information
• Find potential weaknesses

If a source is using methods or drawing conclusions that are incompatible with other research in its field, it may not be reliable.

Integrating sources into your work

Once you have found information that you want to include in your paper, signal phrases can help you to introduce it. Here are a few examples:

Following the signal phrase, you can choose to quote, paraphrase or summarize the source.

• Quoting : This means including the exact words of another source in your paper. The quoted text must be enclosed in quotation marks or (for longer quotes) presented as a block quote . Quote a source when the meaning is difficult to convey in different words or when you want to analyze the language itself.
• Paraphrasing : This means putting another person’s ideas into your own words. It allows you to integrate sources more smoothly into your text, maintaining a consistent voice. It also shows that you have understood the meaning of the source.
• Summarizing : This means giving an overview of the essential points of a source. Summaries should be much shorter than the original text. You should describe the key points in your own words and not quote from the original text.

Whenever you quote, paraphrase, or summarize a source, you must include a citation crediting the original author.

Citing your sources is important because it:

• Allows you to avoid plagiarism
• Establishes the credentials of your sources
• Backs up your arguments with evidence
• Allows your reader to verify the legitimacy of your conclusions

The most common citation styles are APA, MLA, and Chicago style. Each citation style has specific rules for formatting citations.

Generate APA, MLA, Chicago,  and Harvard citations in seconds

Scribbr offers tons of tools and resources to make working with sources easier and faster. Take a look at our top picks:

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• Paraphrasing tool: Avoid accidental plagiarism and make your text sound better.
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• Knowledge Base : Explore hundreds of articles, bite-sized videos, time-saving templates, and handy checklists that guide you through the process of research, writing, and citation.